A corner of China most travellers have never heard of is making a concerted push onto the international stage. Aba Prefecture in Sichuan — home to the Qiang people, one of China's oldest ethnic groups — was showcased in Paris this month through a company called Hearth Light, which brought Qiang embroidery, sheepskin drum dancing and a pair of panda mascot characters named Wenwen and Chuanchuan to a French audience.
The Paris trip wasn't just a cultural display. Qinxin Holdings and the French Chinese Overseas Association signed a cooperation agreement and unveiled a plaque for the 'Hearth Light · European Center of Aba Intangible Cultural Heritage'. The idea is to give Aba's traditions a permanent foothold in Europe, with Hearth Light acting as a content co-developer handling international cultural communication, language and cultural data collection, and pushing cultural IP into overseas markets.
The more concrete news for travellers: the Aba Intangible Cultural Heritage Theme Park is due to open in early November, timed to coincide with Qiang New Year celebrations — one of the best moments to see the region's culture in full swing. A parallel development, the Yingxiu International Intangible Cultural Heritage Town, is also under construction in the same area, which sits near the 2008 earthquake zone around Wenchuan.
There's a tech angle too. Hearth Light has built a large AI model dedicated specifically to intangible cultural heritage, and it has completed China's regulatory filings for generative AI services and deep synthesis algorithms. The company frames its whole strategy around a 'Content, Scenarios, Platforms and Technology' framework — essentially trying to turn embroidery patterns, drum dances and oral traditions into digital products, immersive park experiences and exportable IP.
Why does this matter if you're planning a trip? Sichuan beyond Chengdu's panda base remains genuinely under-visited by Western travellers, and Aba Prefecture packs in Tibetan and Qiang cultures, the Jiuzhaigou valley and the Minshan mountains. A purpose-built heritage theme park plus an international heritage town could make the region far easier to navigate for visitors who want structured cultural experiences rather than Independent travel. If the November opening lines up with Qiang New Year, that festival period would be the window to aim for.
